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A total of 25 courses have been found.
Data, theories of evolution of human cultures from end of Pleistocene to emergence of complex societies; emphasis on prehistoric cultural information from world areas from which relatively complete sequences are available.

The focus of this course is on the evolution of human culture from the hunters and gatherers of the Pleistocene (Ice Ages) to the complex societies of historically known civilizations. Cultures of both the Old and New Worlds are covered. Also provided is an introduction to the techniques of excavation, dating, analysis, and preservation of archaeological remains. Discussion sections supplement topics covered in class and include several graded assignments.

Historical Perspectives

Visual analysis, media and techniques, artistic subject matter and aesthetic issues; historical periods and movements from ancient times to present; provides strong orientation to visual aspects of humanities, background for other art history courses, and introduction to visual arts for personal enrichment; for students new to art history.

Art and Visual Culture is an introductory course designed for students who have had no previous art history courses. Students meet for lectures by Professor Kinsey on Tuesdays and Thursdays and then in smaller group sections with Art History Graduate Student Teaching Assistants. The course fulfills the UI General Education Requirements for fine arts or humanities. We will work towards facility with analysis of visual objects, familiarity with media and techniques that artists have used over time, understanding different approaches to subject matter and aesthetic issues, and an acquaintance with the dominant historical periods and movements from ancient times to the present. Writing and speaking about art will be emphasized as well in section meetings. Focusing mainly on art of the western world, this course is not a survey, but will provide a strong orientation to the visual aspects of the humanities, good background for additional art history courses, and an introduction to the visual arts for personal enrichment. Requirements include regular attendance, a series of quizzes, and two to three short (3-5 page) papers, two of which require only looking, thinking, and writing, rather than research.

Historical Perspectives Literary, Visual, and Performing Arts
Survey to foster development of critical skills in thinking and writing about visual culture, and to familiarize students with broad outlines of artistic development in the Western tradition, from prehistory through later Middle Ages; aesthetic qualities of artworks, relationship between style, function, and meaning.

This is the foundational course for the study of Art History, the discipline devoted to the skillful wrapping of words around images. The class surveys the history of western art, from pre-historic cave paintings through the age of Gothic cathedrals, touching along the way on the civilizations of ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, and the early medieval world. In richly illustrated lectures and weekly discussion sections, students will be invited to consider big questions such as: What do we really mean by “art”? What roles has art played in pre-modern societies? How can study of ancient and medieval art contribute valuable perspectives on modern art and culture? Or, more specifically, why was the Old Capitol in Iowa City designed to look somewhat like a Greek temple? By the end of the course, students will have gained familiarity with the broad outlines of western artistic tradition through the late Middle Ages, and they will also have developed valuable skills in decoding and writing about visual imagery, which can be useful in analyzing everything from political advertisements to website design.

Historical Perspectives Literary, Visual, and Performing Arts

Survey of the Western world's visual arts from Renaissance (ca. 1400) to present; major movements and principal masters of Western Europe and the United States in their social and historical contexts; focus on stimulation of visual literacy and familiarity with outstanding cultural monuments.

As a Distance Online Education class, this course is completely asynchronous. There is no in-person component to the class.

This is the foundational course for the study of art history. No prior study of art history is necessary. The course is a survey of Western Art from the European Renaissance to the contemporary world. It introduces some of the most famous and exciting works of art produced in the West from the Renaissance to the present day, including works of painting, sculpture, architecture, prints, photography, performance, and installation art. We follow artistic developments through the centuries, looking at major artists and works from the Renaissance and Baroque periods, 18th and 19th-centuries, and from the world of modern and contemporary art. This class teaches students how to look closely at works of art and understand them in historical, cultural, and aesthetic contexts.

This course has online proctored exams, all of which will be administered via Proctorio, an online proctoring service. Generally, students will need: a computer with 2 GB of free RAM, a reliable internet connection, a webcam capable of scanning the testing environment, a working microphone, a quiet, private location, and the Google Chrome browser with the Proctorio extension installed.

Historical Perspectives Literary, Visual, and Performing Arts

Fundamental and universal question—what is the relationship between humanity and nature; how ornamental garden has functioned as a metaphor for paradise across time and among diverse cultures; basic tools to analyze any landscape design; how artful manipulation of nature has served to express various political, religious, and social ideals across the globe; comprehensive and chronological survey of garden design development.

This course poses a fundamental and universal question: what is the relationship between humanity and nature? In order to address this problem, students will examine how the ornamental garden has functioned as a metaphor for paradise across time and among diverse cultures.The course has three central goals. First, it provides students with the basic tools with which to analyze any landscape design. Secondly, it demonstrates how the artful manipulation of nature has served to express various political, religious, and social ideals across the globe. Finally, this course offers a comprehensive and chronological survey of the development of garden design. Topics for analysis include the water gardens of Islam, the Zen gardens of Japan, and the humanist gardens of Renaissance Italy. This course will be included as an elective for the Sustainability certificate in the The Power of Culture and Society breadth area.

 

Historical Perspectives
Introductory survey of Chinese history and civilization from its origins to 1800; exploration of traditions in politics, social organization, thought, religion, and culture. Historical Perspectives International and Global Issues
Introduction to Korean history and culture; how meanings of "Korea" and "Koreans" changed from ancient times to present; relevant issues of politics, society, and culture; events that shaped ancient Korean states—Koryo state (918-1392), the Choson dynasty (1392-1910), Japanese colonization (1910-1945), and the two Koreas (1945-present); how present perspectives on Korea have influenced understandings of its past. Historical Perspectives International and Global Issues
Thematic examination of theories and practices of Greco-Roman physicians, which in turn became the medical tradition of medieval Islamic world and European medicine until mid-19th century; historical medical terms, theories, and practices.

This class thematically examines the intellectual, practical, and social dimensions of medicine in the ancient Mediterranean world, from ancient Egypt through ancient Greece and Rome to the early Islamic and Christian middle ages:  the nature, theories, and intellectual development of medical thought; its dietetic, pharmacological, and surgical practices; and the institutional, class, and geographic setting of its practitioners and patients.  The theories and practices of ancient Greco-Roman physicians, the focus of this class, became the prevailing medical tradition of the Islamic world and European medicine until the mid-19th century.  This class also introduces the major historiographical perspectives involved in studying and understanding historical medicine.

 

  Historical Perspectives
History, literature, art, architecture, religion, social life ca. 3000 B.C.E. to second century B.C.E.

This course critically explores the full range of ancient Greece’s cultural exploits within the broad scope of historical change, based on a variety of evidence and perspectives. Topics include the rise and fall of political regimes; the diversity of social experiences of women, men, slaves, and foreigners; works of literature and art; advances in science and technology; methods of war and diplomacy; and debates over how to live a good life in a chaotic world.

Historical Perspectives
History, literature, politics, religion, social structure from eighth century B.C.E. to second century C.E.

This is an introduction to the history and the culture of the Roman people, from the late bronze age (ca. 1000 B.C.E) to the time of Constantine (4th century C.E.). The lectures, discussions, and assignments will be focused on several recurring themes: the ideas of citizenship and political authority; the nature and function of religion; art as the expression of identity; and the changing significance of civilization and barbarism. The goal of the course is to develop an understanding of the Romans; to identify some central characteristics of Roman society; and to examine the evidence on which the Romans' long-lasting cultural influence is based.

Historical Perspectives

Influences of digital media on religion and spirituality today.

 

Some characterize the digital age by the rise of science and technology and the death of religion.  This course offers a different perspective.  It explores diverse relationships between religion and technology—from enthusiastic fusion to adamant prohibition—focusing on three questions: What makes a medium digital? How do we connect to and disconnect from the world around us? And is there such a thing as "online religion"? Capitalizing on the vibrant world of digital technology in contemporary lived religion, from kosher cell phones to aboriginal satellites, this course inquires critically into the ways that a humanities approach provides unique and important resources for understanding new media and cultural life.

 

Historical Perspectives
How do we understand the past on its own terms and what is its relevance to the present? Introduction to historical thinking through a variety of topics.

How do we understand the past on its own terms and what is its relevance to the present? Introduction to historical thinking through a variety of topics.

Historical Perspectives
How does history help to explain our interconnected world? Introduction to international and global thinking through a variety of topics.

How does history help to explain our interconnected world? Introduction to international and global thinking through a variety of topics.

Historical Perspectives International and Global Issues
European and American religious life from Renaissance to 21st century; focus on specific themes, such as secularism, regionalism, pluralism. Historical Perspectives

How did today's globalized world come to be? Which aspects of globalization are new and which are inherited from the past? Taking a long-term perspective, this course traces the development and acceleration of global interdependence since the 14th century; how far-flung parts of the globe have been linked to one another, how long-distance connections affected the societies involved, and how individuals have experienced and contributed to such global networks; students develop an understanding of globalization's long history leading up to the present and of their place in contemporary global networks.

Historical Perspectives
America since Civil War and Reconstruction; politics, society, and culture from the post-Civil War decades through the Progressive Era, the Great Depression, and two world wars; the "Cold War" with Soviet communism abroad and at home, social protest movements and their influence on electoral politics, and the evolving economic and political role of U.S. in the world. Historical Perspectives
How have events of European history shaped modern institutions, politics, and culture worldwide, and how have other regions of the world shaped Europe? Students explore this question by tracing European history in a global context from the late Roman Empire to the 18th century to not only understand this history, but also learn how to read, write, and think critically about it.

How have the events of European history shaped modern institutions, politics, and culture worldwide – and how have other regions of the world shaped Europe? This course explores this question by tracing European history in a global context from the late Roman Empire to the eighteenth century.

From 400 to 1400, we will follow the rise of Christianity, the fall of the Western Roman Empire, and the development of the “heirs of Rome:” the Holy Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, and the medieval Islamic caliphates.

The years 1400-1800 bring radical scientific and religious change as well as a dramatic new global reach. We’ll look at the Renaissance, the Reformation, the advent of the printing press, contact between Europe and the Americas, the trans-Atlantic slave trade, witchcraft panic, the Scientific Revolution, and the rise of modern forms of warfare, governance, and global trade.

By the end of the semester, you will be able to see links between political, economic, and cultural changes over time. Through reading and discussing primary historical sources and completing short writing assignments, creative, research-based essays, and exams, you will learn to interpret historical evidence and write and speak confidently about it. You will bring an informed historical perspective to many crucial questions facing modern global societies.

Historical Perspectives
Historical development of journalism in the United States; cultural, historical content.

This course surveys the historical and cultural development of media in the U.S. and global community from the printing press to the digital age. This course counts toward the General Education requirement for Historical Perspectives.

Historical Perspectives

Historical narrative of popular music; focus on understanding and analyzing music of past and present in relation to major issues central to popular culture and society; production, dissemination, and reception of popular music; interpretation of ways in which music forms individual and collective identities and how contemporary musical experiences are shaped by historical processes.

Historical Perspectives
Philosophical investigation of the nature of human life and of what makes human life valuable and/or meaningful. Historical Perspectives

Examination of conflict between state power and individual liberty; philosophical and historical examination of theories from Plato through today.

Should we spend more/less money on social programs or the military?  Should there be more/less censorship of movies, television or the internet?  Is torture morally permissible under certain circumstances?  Should we legalize many of the drugs that are now illegal?  While these and other similar issues will be explicitly discussed in the course, we will also address even more fundamental and general questions, the answers to which might influence our views on these and other matters.  These questions include:  How should an ideal state be governed and how should its leaders be chosen?  When should a government have the authority to use force to prevent a person from acting as he or she chooses?  What reason or obligation do people have (if any) to act in accord with the laws of their government even when they disagree with those laws?  In deciding what to do, should we make the decision based solely on what is in our self-interest or should we take into account the interests of others?  We examine these questions by looking at works of some of the most influential philosophers in history, and, when possible, we try to understand their views within the larger context of the historical and intellectual climate in which they were expressed. Readings include The Republic by Plato, Leviathan by Hobbes, and On Liberty and Utilitarianism by Mill.  We also look at some recent Supreme Court cases that deal with controversies concerning freedom. All assigned readings will be posted on ICON.

Historical Perspectives

Representative plays as performed in social contexts of ancient Egypt; classical Greece, Rome, India, and Japan; and medieval and early modern Europe. Duplicates THTR:2410.

This course offers a fun and exciting way to learn about world history through the theatre. We study plays not just as texts on the page but as performance events that reveal a great deal about how people in different societies through time saw themselves and their world. Considering Ancient Egyptian influences and moving into Classical Greece, Rome, India, Japan, and Medieval and Renaissance Europe, we read plays–including works by Aeschylus, Shakespeare, and Aphra Behn, one of the earliest known women playwrights–that range from shocking tragedy to bawdy comedy. Course material is covered through lectures accompanied by audio/visual presentations and once-weekly discussion sections. Special attention is given to helping students improve their writing as they fulfill course requirements. Primary assignments include a mid-term and a final exam in short-answer and essay format, attendance at two University Theatre productions, and a five-page analytical paper.

 

Historical Perspectives Literary, Visual, and Performing Arts
Major developments in Anglo-European, Indian, Asian, and African theatre and drama, 3000 B.C.E. to C.E. 1700; sociopolitical, economic, and cultural circumstances of original productions. Offered spring semesters.

This course examines how theater has both reflected and created social structures, perceptions, and values in ancient Egypt; classical Greece, Rome, India, and Japan; and medieval and early modern Europe. Representative plays, ranging from shocking tragedy to bawdy comedy and including works by Shakespeare and the earliest known women playwrights, are analyzed as performed events within their respective historical contexts. Course material is covered through lectures, extensive use of audio/visual presentations, and group discussions. Assignments include weekly play and text readings, a research paper, and periodic exams, including a final exam. Grading is based chiefly on the quality of papers, exams, and participation in discussion.

Historical Perspectives Literary, Visual, and Performing Arts